A Nation Dreams On

28082009

By Ron CK Sim

Our beloved nation will celebrate her 52nd birthday on 31st August 2009. We have come a long way since that historic day when our Founding Father, the late Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj proclaimed the independence of the Federation of Malaya from British colonial rule at Stadium Merdeka.

Many young Malaysians have never been reminded by our present or past leaders about the foundation upon which our beloved independent nation came into being – the principles of justice and liberty. Is it because these so-called leaders do not wish the people to know what they as the government of the day cannot give or guarantee every Malaysian?

In his Proclamation of Independence speech, the great Tunku called on the people of Malaya to dedicate themselves to the service of the new nation, to work and strive to create a new nation inspired by the ideals of justice and liberty. He proclaimed that the Persekutuan Tanah Melayu “shall be forever a sovereign, democratic and independent state founded upon the principles of liberty and justice, and ever seeking the welfare and happiness of its people and the maintenance of a just peace among all nations.”

The road since independence has been a winding one full of potholes. The task of nation-building is indeed a challenging one. Looking at the state of lawlessness in our nation today only serves to highlight the stark contrasts between what was envisaged by Tunku and his generation of leaders, and what has become the collective product of the three most recent Premiers the country has had.

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad started the rot through his 22 years of autocratic rule signified by massive corruption and abuse of power; Tun Abdullah Badawi simply sailed through for a term with his half-hearted reforms (while accumulating many hours of deep sleep along the way!); and now we have Dato’ Sri Najib Razak, while ‘sloganeering’ his One Malaysia vision, doing more and more damage through his blatant disregard for the rule of law and his administration’s racist rhetorics.

It looks increasingly clear by the day that Najib is trying not merely to emulate but to surpass the ‘high standard’ set by Dr Mahathir.

When the people of a nation give up their dreams, the nation loses its soul. This must not be allowed to happen. Sadly, what have been happening in our country in the last two decades (and more so in the last two years) are making Malaysians at large hopeless and restless. The state of lawlessness has prompted many to opine, rightly or wrongly, that our nation is heading towards a nation in which the likes of Robert Mugabe and Kim Jong Il would welcome with open arms into their ‘exclusive league of nations’!

How are we to endure another half of our lifetime witnessing events which many a times make us laugh and cry at the same time? The events happening back home have thus far proven to have an adverse effect on my brain, my heart and my digestive organs!

Many Malaysians young and old have given up hope and would no longer dare to dream of a better Malaysia for the remaining of our lifetime and those of our next generation. Many have migrated to foreign lands to seek greener (and fairer) pasture and many more are considering that option. There are also the majority who have no where else to go but to stay put, either watching with folded arms and legs, or for the braver and awakened ones, joining the cause and the struggle for change.

What do Malaysians want? What is the Malaysian Dream? The Malaysian Dream means different aspirations to different people and it is therefore not my intention to define what is by nature indefinable. Here is my wish list for a start (and I have many more!):

– I dream that Malaysians of all races and religions can live happily in peace and harmony without being ultra-sensitive and looking at each issue from the angle of race and religion.

– I dream that all Malaysians can be treated with fairness and equality under the law in accordance with the letter and spirit of our sacred Constitution.

– I dream that corruption of any kind and amount and at every level of society will be viewed by society at large with utter disgrace and contempt, and not generally viewed as a norm as it is today.

– I dream that our mainstream media can be free, fair, independent and professional in performing their roles as the ‘fourth pillar of democracy’ and as an effective check-and-balance apparatus on our Executive, Legislature and Judiciary.

– I dream that the Doctrine of Separation of Powers can be upheld and that our Judiciary and all other institutions of the state can function according to their constitutional and statutory roles without fear or favour, and not according to the order, whim and fancy of the government of the day.

– I dream that a two-party system can fully flourish so that the government of the day, be it BN or PR, will always be humble and people-centric knowing that Malaysians will have the alternative and the ultimate power to renew or to withdraw their mandate every five years.

– And last but not least, more specifically, I dream that PR will ‘renew’ our nation’s independence come the next General Election and thereby embark on the arduous journey of realising our Malaysian Dream.

The next few years will witness a sea of change for our beloved nation. Whether we succeed or fail depends entirely on us.

I call on all Malaysians who have their own dreams for the nation to hang on there and don’t ever give up on your Malaysian Dream. Like President Obama said during his victory speech, “While we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes we can.”

Let us give the oft-ridiculed phrase of our very own “Malaysia Boleh!” a new, true meaning.

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4 responses

29082009

Yi Lyn(16:05:44) :

My dream is for Malaysians to realise that a successful multi-racial community is built not on tolerance, but on acceptance. To merely tolerate is to say “I don’t really understand you, but I’ll just let it go for now”; but to accept is to say ” We may be different, but I will respect your beliefs and your right to freedom as I hope you will respect mine.” =)

Following are the Comments posted on The Malaysian Insider for the article “A Nation Dreams On” published on its website on 31st August 2009:

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written by malaysian, August 31, 2009

Come back Ron CK Sim, together we embark on the arduous journey of realising our Malaysian Dream.
We need every right-thinking Malaysian, irrespective of race and religion, in the struggle to claim back this beloved country from the clutches of the destructive umnoputras.

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written by judas, August 31, 2009

I hope all out there do not put too much hope on the next general election. From the looks of things happening a PR win might turn into tragedy at the way events are churning out even before it happens.

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written by ken, August 31, 2009

a well written wish list,this has been my merdeka dream list as well..wish all malaysia dream alike ,fight on and not running away from it.

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written by mk, August 31, 2009

We just want a fair share – nothing more nothing less.

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written by Music Magi, August 31, 2009

Come back… walk the talk or don’t talk at all. The Malaysian Dream can only be built by the people living in it. What’s the use of dreaming when we don’t do anything about it.

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written by Kewin, September 01, 2009

Judas, what do you want? Another 50 years of BN rule to turn this nation into another Zimbabwe?

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written by 1Malaysia, September 01, 2009

Satu bahasa, satu bangsa, satu negara.
It’s already happening in various countries where various ethnics identify themselves as one and speak the main language of their country.
Can the Chinese and Indians help to realise this mission?

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written by mukmin, September 01, 2009

with all due respect to ron ck sim, never before in the history of the nation are the people closer to winning back the country from the governors. indeed in malaysia we can and must believe, especially now, in ‘yes we can’or “malaysia boleh’..

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written by Juan Carlos, September 01, 2009

One doesnt claim to be a patriotic malaysian if living in london and not living in one’s own motherland and understand the ground situation. Better stay in london, a capital city of a country which have reaped over trillions of money and assets from its colonial countries including malaysia or the federation of MALAYA as it was known then. Malaysia is a country where most and majority of its people including the minorities have enjoyed living in peace and prosperity. If not I wonder why would millions of illegal immigrants are current;y happily living in Malaysia?!!!

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written by judas, September 01, 2009

Do what must be done but just be prepared.

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written by Online, September 01, 2009

At permatang pasir, a disbarred lawyer, who has stolen several hundred thousand ringgit from his own clients, married an illegal second wife (without telling wifet no 1) managed to get 35% of the votes. He did this amazing feat just because he was an AMNO candidate.
The dream of a fair, just and law abiding malaysia will be hard to come by. A good number of malaysians are happy with mega corruption and the kind of moral required to be a mega corrupted politician. Something is wrong in Malaysia, and it derived from manufactured racial tension. You can see how politically useful it is. Look at Permatang Pasir, remember she-who-cannot-be-named/mongolian national. All would have been politicial deaths in democratic nations.

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written by Matteo, September 01, 2009

UMNO has so corrupt all Malaysian institutions and entrench all its people in it that it will be difficult for any other political parties to rule without facing endless provacations and agitations. Fanning religious and racial hatred and animosities and releasing them in a control manner and with the connivance of the Police create problems for the government of rival party which they are helpless to contain.
This is political blackmail by a morally evil political group whose members need to be in power to enjoy the disbursement of public funds or even to ensure such abuses are not expose by the new government.

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written by Ron CK Sim, September 01, 2009

Guys, I shall return very soon to join the struggle for change. Being away does not mean one is not patriotic while living in Malaysia does not mean one is. While one is away, it is imperative that one does what he can to contribute to the struggle for change back home, n that is what i’m doing. Hope other overseas-based Malaysians will do their part to complement what our awakened brothers n sisters back home are doing. The Malaysian dream lives on …

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written by AgeeToDisagree, September 02, 2009

Come back before GE13 otherwise it’s Cthulu Fh’tagn for you and all the other overseas ppl!

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written by anak malaysia, September 02, 2009

Let it be thousands of years, it may take many generations, I dare all Malaysians to keep this dream alive no matter what may, coz, hope is the only fuel that can outlast time till its achievement. We don’t live for today, its the future we all care about. We must and we will do what is necessary to ensure realisation of the Malaysia dream. Let’s “Dream of a Great Nation that the weak and corrupt dare not dream of”.

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written by The Observer, September 02, 2009

One thing I am happy about is that we have finally managed to expose UMNO’s divide and rule strategy which was cleverly disguised as upholding Malay rights and supremacy. Even Malays now realised and discerned this deceit although there are still those who are blinded because of patronage and cronyism in UMNO.

Well done ron for starting this. I must say there is always someone who will be discouraging you in your pursuit of the Malaysian dream. Don’t let these people be a wet blanket and dampen your spirit. As for me I actually have given up on the current political situation and politic bikering as it just makes me wonder will it be ever possible for a better Malaysia as long our current ministers and cronies controls the system. True that to beat them we need a change but the little change that happened at last GE seemed to have made our country in a worse situation now I feel with no stabilty. Look at what happened to Perak state. The oppositions can’t hold on to their candidates because of money politics and each parties different agenda. So the big question, is it possible for a CHANGE to have leaders with no hidden agendas and ulterior motives.

Thanks! I understand yr frustration n u r not alone. I can only say, for change to happen, there will surely be many trials n tribulations that we have to go thru. It’s oft-said, no pain, no gain. If anything, the Perak case should strengten our determination further to throw out this UMNO regime which kidnapped, threatened n enticed (not to mention murdered!). This is one case that showed the sorry state of all our institutions – monarchy, judiciary, police force, MACC, EC, civil service, MSM, etc.
While i cant speak for the rest, i m one to rather endure a period of unstability (or even chaos) than to allow my country to rot for another 50 years. Our parents allowed it but i will never do. Keep yr hope alive!